Display device



Apil 15, 1930. H. SARAH/1N 1,754,242

- u DISPLAY DEVICE y Filed July 25, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l )Hun INVENTOR m5 ATTO NEYS H. SARAFAN DI SPLAY DEVI CE April 15, 1930.

Filed July 25, 1929 2 sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTO Haj Juzg/Earn Mug/Mm@ HIS ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 15, 193@ UNITED STATS PATENT OFFICE IHAIG SARAFIAN, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIG'NOR T0 NOVELlTE, NC., A. GOROBATIO'N F NEW YORK DISPLAY :DEVICE Application filed July 25, 19:29.V Serial No. 380,896.

The device of the present invention may have a Wide and varied range of utility but is peculiarly adapted for embodiment in a portable day and night sign.

An object of the invention is to provide a sign unit Which during the daytime Will afford an extremely attractive display, the attention-inviting qualities of which are due in large measure to the highly ornamental and tasteful manner in Which the advertisements or the like are framed and mounted.

Another object is to provide a sign of this character equally attractive for lpurposes of illuminated vnight display Which is equipped With a special framing or border portion which affords a striking and attractive frame for the sign at night, When the main decorative border is lIlot so clearly visible.

Other objects are to provide a sign of simple, light, sturdy, practical construction which will be rugged and durable in use, which is Well suited to meet the requirements of economical manufacture, Which may be conveniently manipulated for purposes of changing the displays and which is conveniently portable and selfssustaining in up right position so that it may be readily shifted about in theatre lobbies, shovv Windows or other locations of use.

Another object is to provide a sign presenting an artistic illuminated. transparent border frame closely simulating a brightly colored mosaic, and to avoid the use of eX- pensive glass panes, the luminous border being preferably fabricated from small thin strips of scrap glass.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the sign includes an upright panel carry ing a lamp casing on its back and provided usually with means for maintaining it in substantially upright position. The panel provides a more or less ornate and attractive frame for the sign units vvhich are mounted 4.5 therein or therebehind, the lamp casing being preferably so designed that ready interchanging of sign cards or sign unitsV may be effected.

When the sign is displayed in a dark or obscure location or used for purposes of night advertising the ornamental frame loses a certain amount of effectiveness, and I, therefore, provide a multi-colored luminous inner framing structure standing out in sharp and brilliant relief to afford an attention-compelling border for the sign at night.

Preferably the inner frames proper are arranged Within but spaced from the outer solid ornamental panel frame and the translucent luminous framing structure is arranged be tween the sign frames proper and the panel frame. A feature of the sign is the fact that I am enabled to securely support the various sections of glass of the translucent frame and to supportl the inner sign frames from the outer panels by the simple expedient of using rigid supporting spacer blocks, and marginal sign frame pieces With overlapping ends, the blocks and the sign frame preferably com prising cut lengths of similar strip stock and cooperatively serving to support the sign frame rigidly Within the outerv border and to support the colored translucent sections of the illuminated frame and space them apart.

l/Vith the above noted and other objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts as Will be more fully hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

The invention may be more fully understood from the following description in con nection with the accompanying drawings wherein l is a front elevational view of a dis,- )lay device embodying the invention.

Fig. 9. is a side elevational view thereof with part of the lamp casing broken away.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional detail on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

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Fig. 4 is a similar View complementing Fig. 3 and taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 are enlarged sectional details taken on the lines 5&5, 6-6, 7-7, 8-8 and 9 9 respectively of Fig. 1.

Referring with particularity to the drawings, the panel. designated generally at 1() includes a pair of spaced uprights 11 connected at their tops by an upper cross piece 12 the latter preferably mounting an ornamental cap or crown piece 13. The lower ends of the uprights 11 serve as feet 11u and spaced slightly above the feet are a pair of transverse cross members 14 and 15 cooperating with the uprights 11 to frame a wooden panel 16 which may be decorated in any suitable manner as indicated at 17. The feet llaand the lower cross piece 15 may serve to cooperatively support decorative corner pieces or grille work 18.

A lamp casing 19, of the open front variety, is mounted behind the panel 10, this casing being preferably provided "with mounting flanges 20 lying behind the members 11, 12 and 14 lrespectively and secured by conventional swinging latching devices 21 or in any other suitable manner. An easel 22 is hingedly connected at 23 to the upper rear corner of the lampcasing 19 and bracingr rods 24 pivotedly connected at 25 to the lower end of the easel may be detachably engaged at 26 with the feet 111L to prevent inadvertent swinging of easel and panel relatively to each other, such as might result in collapse or toppling over of the sign.

A pair o-f vertical framing elements 27 are arranged inwardly of the uprights 11, spaced slightly from these uprights and connected at their tops and bottoms to the cross pieces 12 and 14 respectively. Similarly, transverse framing elements 28 are arranged inwardly of the cross pieces 12 and 14, spaced somewhat therefrom and attached at their ends to the uprights 11. Where the cross pieces 27 and 28 intersect, they are respectively cut away as indicated at 28b and 27 b inFig. 6 providing a conventional interlocking notched structure which not only strengthens the frame members 27, 28 butpermits all the framing members to lie substantially flush with each other and with the uprights 11 and transverse members 12 and 14. The members 27, 28 cooperate to provide a sign frame cooperative with the panel to define a border frame space, and the ends'of the frame pieces not only affo-rd a decorative means for rigidly securing the sign frame within the panel, but serve to interrupt the border frame opening for a purpose which will be more fully hereinafter described.

At suitable intervals spacer bloclrs 29 may be employed between the framing members 27, 28 and the members 11, 12 or 14 as the case may be, these blocks as best seen in 5 being secured bv nails or'brads 30 to the framing members and the uprights or cross pieces with which they connect the fra-ming members. Thus the blocks also interrupt the border framing opening, and form additional rigid connections between the sign frame and panel. For purposes of economy the sign framing members 27, 28 and the spacer blocks 29 are cut from lengths of strip stock. This stock may be of many forms, being illustratively shown as having an ornamental groove rrnning longitudinally thereof which may be painted to contrast with the body of the stock.

Preferably a third transverse framing.

member 31 extends between the uprights 11 somewhat above the lower cross frame 28, and the framed area between 31, lower 28 and 27, 27 is vertically subdivided into a plurality of independent sign frames by vertical frame bars 32 also of the same stock as 27, 28, 29 connecting the lower framin member 28 and the 'ramingmember 3l. T e lower edge of the cross member 12 is provided with a rearwardly facing shoulder 12a and the upper edge of the top framing member 28 is provided with a rearwardly facing shoulder 28a. A glass strip 35 is inserted in the pocket cooperatively defined by the shoulders 12 and 28a and secured by brads 36. Asimilar construction is resorted to for filling with a plurality of independent strips of colored glass all of the narrow spaces between the members 27, 28 and the members 11, 12 and 14. This succession of narrow glass windows 35 is of course interrupted by the blocks 29 but these blocks are formed withV rearwardly facing shoulders 295L as are the edges of the uprights 11 and cross piece 14 so that all four edges of each strip of glass rest upon the shoulders defined by the associated framingvstructure,

the glass strips being thus firmly mounted and having their edges entirely concealed.

Behind the-large sign space cooperatively framed by the members 27, 28, 27 and 31, I preferably mount a changeable letter sign unit designated generally at 40. The details of this sign unit are not in themselves my invention. Many such units might be utilized but I preferably employ a sign constructed in accordance with the prior patent to Herrschaft No. 1,662,704, dated -March 13, 1928. This particular sign unit assemblage may be provided with upper and lower flanges 41 adapte-d to be entered by a lateral sliding movement between horizontal supporting rails 42 and 43 fixed to the upper cross piecev 28 and cross piece 31 respectively. The lamp casing 19 is provided at one side with a hinged door 44 which may be swung open in order to permit the .sign unit 40 to be slid into or out of position between its supporting rails 42 and 43.

The three sign spaces defined by the vertin cal members e2, cross piece 31, lower cross member 28 and the lower ends of the vertical iframes members 27 are handled in a somewhat different manner to permit the ready application and removal of illuminable signs. Lower` cross piece Q8 provided at its upper edge with a rearwardly facing shoulder and the lower edge of the cross piece 3l is provided with a rearwardly facing shoulder 5l. A strip of material 52 nailed at 53 to the back of the cross piece 28 cooperates with the cut away shoulder portion of the rail 28 to define a pocket adapted to receive the lower edge of a sign element designated generally at 54, one of these sign elements completely filling each of the three similar framing spaces. This sign element consists simply of a pair of sheets of glass 55 and 56 with a translucent sign card 57 between them. When the card has been laid between the glass plates and the lower edges of the card and plates inserted in the pocket defined by 28, 50 and 5l a swinging latch 58 pivoted to the rear face of the cross piece 3l is swung downwardly behind the upper edge of the glass sheet 56 retaining the parts against accidental displacement.

In practice the lamp casing may be provided with any suitable number of lamps such as 60, these lamps being preferably series connected and the socket of one lamp of the series mounting if desired a conventional thermostatic flasher switch (not shown).

During the daytime, even if the sign is not illuminated, its ernamental appearance will compel attention and the border consisting of the colored glass plates 35 will be rather inconspicuous. At night, however, the ornamental appearance of the front panel 10 is not apparent and the sign relies for its decorativeness primarily upon the brilliantly coloredstarlrly outlined luminous frame which in appearance is much lilre a mosaic. The use of the flasher switch of course makes the illuminated frame even more striking and attention-compelling.

It will thus be seen that there is herein described a device in which the several features of this invention are embodied, and which device in its action attains the various objects of the invention an d is well suited to meet the requirements of practical use.

As many changes could be made in the above construction, and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing'from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in limiting` sense.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is l. A display device including' a plurality of connected outer frame members defining a substantially open panel, a plurality of inner framing members spaced from and connected to the outer frame andcooperating with the latter to form a framed opening, a glass border framed in said opening, said inner framing members also defining within said glass border, a framed opening for a display sign the outer frame and inner fram ing members having rearwardly facing shoulders defining rearwardly facing ledges against which the edges of the glass panes are secured.

2. A display device including a plurality of connected outer frame members defining a substantially open panel, a plurality of inner framing members spaced from and rigidly connected to the outer frame and cooperating with the latter to form a framed opening, a plurality of translucent border forming glass panes framed in said opening, said inner framing members also defining within said glass border a framed opening for a display sign the outer frame and inner framing members having rearwardly facing shoulders defining rearwardly facing ledges against which the side edges of the glass panes are secured and means interrupting the first mentioned framed opening and defining rearwardly facing ledges against which the ends of the panes are adapted to rest.

` 3. A display device including a substantially open panel, a plurality of inner framing members spaced from and rigidly connected to the panel and cooperating with the latter to form a framed opening, a translucent border framed in said opening and consisting of a. plurality of independent sections of translucent material, the means for securing the inner framing members to the panel serving to interrupt the continuity of the translucent border and to space the individual members thereof apart, said means comprising spacer blocks connecting the panel and the inner framing members.

4. A display device including al substan tially open panel, a plurality of inner framing members spaced from and rigidly connected to the panel and cooperating with the latter to form a framed opening, a translucent border framed in said opening and consisting of a plurality of independent sections of translucent material, the means for securing the inner framing members to the panel serving to interrupt the continuity of the translucent border and to space the indiyidual members thereof apart, said means comprising spacer blocks connecting the panel and the inner framing members and also comprising the overlapped ends of the inner framing members.

5. A display device including a plurality of connected outer frame members defining a substantially open panel, a plurality of inner framing members spaced from and connected to the outer frame and cooperating with the latter to form a framed opening, a glass border framed in said opening, said inner framing members also defining within said glass border a framed openingefor a display sign, the outer frame and inner framingr members having rearwardly facing shoulders defining rearwardly facing ledges against whichV the edges of the glass panes are secured, and means for removably securing the glass panes against said shoulders.

Signed at New York in the county of New York and State of New York this 23rdl day of July, A. D. 1929. Y HAIG SARAFIAN. 

